The present application is directed toward data communications methods and, more particularly, to a novel method for random-access radio-frequency data communications between a central controller and each of a plurality of remote sites.
The problems of providing command and control communications, in a system having a multiplicity of remote sites controlled by a central controller, has been widely investigated. Such a system, for example as utilized as part of a power generation, storage and distribution network, must provide communications for facilitating such system operations as: automatic meter reading, automatic load control, load management, system fault condition control, system reconfiguration and the like. As greater use of system command and control functions is provided, a greater volume of information must be exchanged between the central system controllers and each of a plurality of remote system locations at which system monitoring sensors and system actuators are located. It is therefore highly desirable to provide a communications system having very high information-carrying capability, so that more complex control operations for ever more complex systems can be handled. Because of the known difficulties in providing wire communications between the various remote and central sites, a radio-frequency data communications system of great information-carrying capacity is desirable. Specifically, a radio-frequency communication system allowing random access by each of the plurality of remote sites of the at least one central controller and allowing the central controller to access any one of the plurality of remote sites, is highly desirable.